The Thing About Konpeito Candy
by St. Harridan
Summary: Kenpachi brings Yachiru out for breakfast. Unfortunately, she doesn't like toast very much.


"Thanks," Kenpachi muttered as the waitress placed a plate of a few pieces of toast on the table before him, ignoring the way she bent lower than necessary. The front of her tight yukata strained against her chest, and though many men would steal the chance to take a peek, he paid her no mind. He had other things to care about.

"That's yer lunch," he said to the child sitting across the table from him as he tossed a few coins out, drawing an amount just enough to pay for the food. Troublesome, how he had to take care of this kid. High maintenance – if it were just him alone on this journey, he would have a better set of clothes to wear by now.

The money he earned from being a hired assassin. The pay wasn't much, but it was the only thing he was good at – and the only job the people would entrust to him. All that money, instead of being channelled to purchasing better clothes and maybe even a sleeping bag, was used to feed her.

But Kenpachi wasn't really complaining. A little irritated, maybe, for the way the brat demanded food all the time, but after thinking about it twice, food was more worthwhile than a nice, warm yukata. Despite how he wanted one to block out the night time chill, especially that of winter, he still couldn't keep the child out of mind.

A small whine brought him back to his senses, and when Kenpachi tore his eyes away from the window, he found her sitting there with a very puzzled look on her face.

"What?" he couldn't help but bark, making a few heads turn in curiosity. "The hell ye want, brat?" he lowered his voice, casting a glare at a young man who sat nearby with his spouse. Yachiru stared up at him, pointing a chopstick at the piece of toast.

"Ye do know that ye don't need that shit to eat this, right?" But then he saw that a small piece had been bitten off from the edge of the bread, and the next moment, Yachiru spat out a wet, mushy, brown lump onto the plate. "The fuck're ye doin'?" He snatched the plate away so that it didn't come in contact with the lump. It dropped onto the table in a small pool of saliva. Kenpachi had seen worse, but he couldn't help but hiss at her for such indecency.

"Ye're gonna get us kicked out, dumbass!"

"Not nice," Yachiru said, bits of toast sticking to the sides of her mouth and between her milk teeth. "Not nice, Ken-chan. I wanna eat candy, Ken-chan. Candy is sweet. This is not sweet."

"So what if it isn't? It's yer goddamn lunch." He shoved the plate under her nose, glaring hard at her. "Now eat. What did I tell ye 'bout wastin' food? Remember what I told ye?"

That struck a chord in her. She lowered her eyes, then picked up a piece and held it to her mouth. There was a look of utter disgust on her face that Kenpachi found highly amusing before she took a bite. Kenpachi watched as she chewed, hands folded across his chest, and before he knew it she spat out another lump.

"_Yachiru_!" Kenpachi snarled, attracting more looks. "Ye're not supposed to do that, ye dumbass! Ye're supposed to _eat _it, not _spit _the goddamn thing out. It's bread, not one of yer fuckin' chewin' gums!"

"But it's not candy, Ken-chan," she said, pushing out her bottom lip, staring at him through a pair of wide, ruby-coloured eyes with a look that almost always drove him insane.

"Is everything all right here?" The waitress came over, flashing a charming smile at Kenpachi who replied with yet another hiss.

"None of yer damn concern, woman."

But she wasn't going to be easily dispelled. She cocked her head to the side, studying Yachiru, and then she snapped her fingers.

"She's a child, sir, so I suggest you get what she wants. Kids won't stop bugging you till they get what they want, and right now I think she wants some sweets." She ruffled Yachiru's hair, earning a growl from Kenpachi. "Would you by any chance be interested in our konpeito candy?"

"Konpeito!" Yachiru immediately jumped onto the table, a wide grin plastered to her face as she fixated the waitress with a stare that Kenpachi knew all too well. "I want konpeito candy! Ken-chan, I want some!"

Kenpachi gritted his teeth and turned towards the window.

"No way in hell, brat. Ye just had some this mornin'. Remember what that old woman told ye?" Kenpachi, surprisingly, had remembered what the old hag told him. He had met with her just a few days ago to ask for help with Yachiru's diet. She'd given him an hour-long lecture about what and what not to give Yachiru. She was just a child, the woman had said, and during this stage she should be given the best meals that he could afford. She also reminded him time and again not to give her too much candy as it was bad for her teeth.

This waitress didn't seem to have the slightest grasp of how to raise a child. Kenpachi wouldn't dare boast that he was the best caretaker around, but at least he knew something or two. Besides, the brat was spoilt. He didn't want to worsen the condition. He knew it would be hell for him if he were to indulge her too much.

"But Ken-_chan _-_"_

"No, Yachiru," he said, squeezing his eyes shut so that he wouldn't have to see her begging. "It ain't gonna do ye any good, y'know. Now let's wrap this up and get goin', eh? We've got a long day ahead of us."

"But sir-"

"What?" he snapped, patience wearing thin. "I don't need yer pretty lil' ass to tell me how to raise a child, okay? This ain't yer young'un. She's mine, so I get to tell her what she should or shouldn't eat, ye hear me?"

The waitress stayed quiet for a moment, looking from Kenpachi to Yachiru and back. He could see the sweat forming on her temples and her face, her hands by her sides trembling from the power of his spiritual pressure. Even with a cape over his head, he still couldn't block out the overflow of his power. Most of the time this came in handy in scaring off people, and now even though he wasn't one for turning against a female, he couldn't control himself. He didn't _want _to. The bitch just wouldn't leave him alone, so she deserved it.

"Okay, you win," she said finally, breathing out a sigh. "But if you do change your mind, the konpeito is over at the counter." She jerked a thumb over her shoulder and, with a shrug, turned on her heel and headed into the kitchen.

"Cheh. Good fuckin' riddance." Kenpachi turned to Yachiru, who now sat on the table staring at him through glassy eyes. Instinctively, Kenpachi edged away from her until his shoulder was pressed up against the wall.

Then, with a scream that pierced through his eardrums, she burst out in tears.

"Shit!" Kenpachi gathered her into his arms and clamped a hand over her mouth to muffle her cries, only to have his fingers bitten by her little white teeth. It didn't hurt though. Getting bitten was the least of his worries. What he wanted to avoid was the attention from the public – he attracted more than enough already with his massive spiritual pressure – and now he was in one of the worst situations possible. All eyes were on him, and he was too busy with Yachiru to throw them a snap or a glare to force them away.

"Shut up, Yachiru!" he hissed into her ear, taking care not to come too close and get hit by her flailing arms and legs.

The waitress came scurrying to their table, face white with panic.

"What's going on here?"

"Like I said, woman," Kenpachi ground out through clenched teeth, grabbing Yachiru's wrists and locking them together while his other arm stayed wrapped around her middle, "this ain't none of yer goddamn business. Just leave me – _us _– alone. We can handle ourselves just fine."

"I don't think you know what you're doing, sir," she reached for Yachiru, but Kenpachi's glare was enough to ward her away. She gripped her hand, biting her lower lip as she looked Yachiru over with concern laced through her expression. "Sir, I really do advise you to get her what she-"

"Shut the fuck up," he snapped. "No candy means no candy. I ain't gonna change my mind just 'cause some bitch is tryin' to tell me how to raise a brat."

"_Kon_ – _pei _– _to_!" Yachiru screamed, emphasizing each word with a kick to the tabletop. "I want konpeito! Ken-chan's bein' meeeean, I hate Ken-chan!"

"_Shit_." Kenpachi pursed his lips, then held her high above his head to look at her. She stopped crying altogether, returning his scrutiny with red-rimmed eyes. "That old hag said I shouldn't give ye too much candy, ye lil' shithead," the curse made the waitress wince, "and she'll kill me if she ever finds out." _Yachiru will kill me too._

Kenpachi softened at the thought of the child's namesake, how she always found time to teach him the ways of caring for a child. She had wanted one of her own, but her time was up before they could even settle down. Kenpachi, much to his regret, had never really paid attention to what she had to say. The only thing that he cared about was her at the time, nobody else, and to think about sharing her affections with a mere child… Kenpachi had to admit that he indeed was a rather selfish man during his younger years.

But Yachiru, through all her strict views on the proper ways of how children should be fed, still couldn't deny the prospect of some konpeito candy. Kenpachi remembered how he worked hard just to set food on the table for them both.

Never did he miss out on the candy.

Finally, Kenpachi let out a weary sigh and looked at Yachiru.

"Ye're a fuckin' pain in the ass, ye know that?" Cute, but a big pain. Just like the one before her.

After some hesitation, he rose to his feet with Yachiru pressed up against his chest, his arms around her small body. Ignoring the looks of disbelief and disapproval people around gave him, Kenpachi marched to the counter and tossed a few coins to the stunned waitress. "Give me yer best."

He walked out of the café with an overjoyed Yachiru sitting on his shoulders munching away on a bag of konpeito.

"Ken-chan, you want some?"

Kenpachi tilted his head back to look at her. She held a small purple ball the size of a pinhead between her index finger and thumb, blinking down at him. There was something akin to hope that shone in her eyes, something that he saw often whenever her namesake offered him some candy after dinner. Kenpachi allowed himself an amused smirk.

"Sure, why not?"

And he opened his mouth and let Yachiru drop the candy in.


End file.
